Selling a home is so much more than putting a sign in the yard or plopping it on the MLS. Educating yourself on how the process works will prevent the anxiety that often accompanies selling a home/property and will give you peace of mind in the process.
The formula for selling your home/property for the best price in a shortest amount of time:
Proper Pricing
+ High Quality Advertising
+ Agent Networking
+ Exposure
+ Open Houses
SOLD!
The Pricing Dilemma
Perception is the single biggest factor for people buying a home/ property. A home / property will sell for what the buyer is willing to pay based on what they perceive the property to be worth. As first impressions are everything, it’s crucial to set a price in a range most buyers will consider attractive and fair.
Many Sellers look at what other properties in their area are listed for and think, “Our home/property is better than those”. They then feel the need to value their property higher than those they see currently on the market. Considering most properties don’t sell for the original asking price, many Sellers don’t realize that their thinking might lead them to making costly mistakes. Factors like; how many days a property has been on the market, the size of competing inventory, and the status of market momentum, all effect the likelihood that a home will sell for its highest value in a reasonable time frame.
You see, the longer a home sits on the market the less perceived value it has. Realtors, knowing that a home has been on the market for a long time will encourage their clients to submit a low offer. The longer this process goes on, the more likely the property will sell bellow it’s market potential.
Property vales and inventory levels constantly fluctuate in every market. As the number of properties on the market grows, the longer it takes to sell properties as buyers have many choices. With more properties to chose frm, the greater the need becomes to price a home attractively. Otherwise, Realtors won’t show the home to their Buyers if they feel it is over priced. A custom fit with the market ensures the home will sell for maximum profit and in a reasonable amount of time.
Attraction Factor
Since over 90% of all properties are purchased with the help of a Realtor, we have to attract them first. Properly priced properties attract the attention of Realtors who in turn relate the value to their buying public. On the other hand, properties priced outside what is considered realistic, repels agents and their clients.
Here’s how it works; after the flurry of activity surrounding a new listing slows down, Realtors and their clients begin to take a serious look at related properties and compare. If they perceive the property to be priced incorrectly, showing activity will tend to fall off. You’ve got once chance at it because Realtors will just not do repeat showings. Offers will not be forth coming. These are all signs that something isn’t right.
Holding out for the highest possible price often results in one of two things; either the home sits on the market and ends up selling for significantly less than the asking price or the listing expires sending a wave of opportunity seekers with low offers.
“…No amount of advertising or open houses will get a buyer to act if they perceive a home’s price to be out of the ballpark…”
What The Numbers Mean
In pricing your home, it is important to examine the current list to sell price ratio for your area. This ratio reflects the difference between the prices the properties were originally listed for and their actual selling price. If homes are generally listed on the high side, there will be a bigger discount to the asking price and the days on the market will be high.
It is also crucial to determine the momentum in your area – how many homes/properties are currently on the market and how many have sold recently? Strategically, a motivated seller should price their home/property attractively, relative to how the market is priced.
Insiders Get The Transaction Moving
The local Realtor group is the biggest audience a seller needs to cater to. In our area, the bulk of sales are “co-brokered”. That is, sales are conducted between different agents and agencies. This makes it imperative for a Realtor to be networked with other Realtors. As most buyers will come through our Realtor network, it is our task to ensure there are compelling advantages for Realtors with buyer clients to take a serious look. We have to convince them that your home is properly priced and worth their time to preview, show, and sell to the buyers.
Properly priced homes/properties sell more quickly
and closer to their asking prices than overpriced ones!
Dear Friends,
